Pick Up the Phone
by the darkness revealed
Summary: This is the story of how Kurt went from a scared, insecure boy to a pillow-fighting, marshmallow-eating ninja, told entirely in phone calls. Kurt/Blaine, spoilers!


Pick Up the Phone by the darkness revealed

**Summary:** This is the story of how Kurt went from a scared, insecure boy to a pillow-fighting, marshmallow-eating ninja, told entirely in phone calls. Kurt/Blaine, spoilers!

**Disclaimer:** The day I own Glee is the day I eat yoghurt. Which is to say, _never going to happen._

**Spoilers:** from _Furt_ and onwards, including spoilers for the Valentine's Day episode. Oh, and Blaine exists. So beware.

**A.N:** Because in my mind, Dalton is a frolicking, jolly place full of pillow fights, marshmallow parties, movie nights, unicorns, rainbows, etc.

* * *

Burt stared at the phone. The phone stared back at him, staying stubbornly silent.

With a muffled growl, Burt stood up and began to pace.

"Burt, honey," Carole called from the kitchen. "It's his first day at that school. Give him some time. You can't really expect him to call you right away."

Burt grunted noncommittally and continued pacing. After his third lap, the phone finally rang. Burt eagerly grabbed the phone and held the handset to his ear. "Hello?"

"Dad?" It was Kurt's voice, sounding small and far-away.

"Hey, Kurt," Burt said, trying not to seem too worried. "How did everything go?"

"Pretty good," Kurt replied. "The classes are great and everyone's really nice. No name-calling or shoving to speak of."

Burt felt a surge of relief. "I'm glad, son. How are you holding up?"

"Um…ok," Kurt said. "I just—" his voice hitched. "I miss you."

Burt rubbed a hand over his head, wondering how to comfort his son. He'd never been any good at emotions and tears. Mollie had always been the one to deal with things like this and it was at times like these that he missed her the most.

Thankfully he was saved by Carole coming out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel. "Is that Kurt?" she asked.

Burt nodded and handed her the phone.

"Kurt, it's Carole." Instantly, her voice quieted. "What's wrong, honey?" She listened to Kurt's hushed answer, nodding and making sympathetic noises. "Shh, don't worry, sweetheart, it's normal to be homesick," she soothed. "Now, you got straight to sleep and when you wake up, you'll feel much better. Ok?" A smile crossed her face, and in that second, Burt loved her more than ever. "Goodnight, dear," she said. "Yes, don't worry, I'll tell Finn you said hello. No problem, sweetie. Bye." She placed the phone back and turned to face Burt, then saw his face.

"Oh, honey." She stepped forward and embraced him. "Don't worry, he'll be fine."

Burt hugged her back tightly. "I know," he said. "I just…he's so far away, all alone."

"Give it some time," Carole said firmly. "You just need to adjust."

Burt just grunted noncommittally and pulled her closer.

GLEE

The phone rang shrilly, causing Burt to drop his book in surprise. Jumping up, he grabbed the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, Dad!" Kurt sounded more cheerful than he had a few days ago.

"Hey, kiddo," Burt smiled. "What're you doing? How are things?"

"I'm still catching up on all my classes," Kurt dutifully answered. "The classes are much harder here than at McKinley, so I've got a lot of work to do. Blaine's offered to help me, though, so everything's moving a lot faster now." And sure enough, Burt could hear a quiet murmur of voices and the faint sound of one of those musicals Kurt liked so much playing in the background.

"Sounds great, kiddo," Burt grinned. Then he really processed Kurt's words and his protective streak kicked in. "Who's this Blaine kid anyway?"

"Oh," Kurt said breathlessly, "I didn't tell you about him? I met him a few weeks ago and he's been helping me adjust to Dalton. He's really nice."

"Uh huh," Burt grunted. "He gay?"

"Dad!" Kurt cried in exasperation.

"Son, I'm your dad. It's my job to be protective of you."

"Do you really have to embarrass me while doing it?" Kurt groaned. "All right, fine. To answer your question, yes, he is. Happy?"

Burt fell silent.

"Dad?" Kurt sounded worried.

Burt frowned. "Are the two of you alone? Is your door open?"

Kurt sighed. "OK, hanging up now, Dad."

"You and I are going to have a talk when you get home," Burt said, and heard Kurt's groan of embarrassment before he disconnected the line.

GLEE

The next time Kurt called, he was crying. He was trying to hide it, of course, gently sniffing back tears and attempting to keep his voice from quivering. "Hi, Dad."

Instantly, Burt was filled with a dark, murderous rage. Whoever had made his kid cry was going to regret it. "What is it, Kurt?" he demanded. "What's wrong?"

Kurt sniffled quietly. "Don't worry, Dad. Nobody did anything…at least, not on purpose." He trailed off into silence. Burt waited patiently for him to continue.

"I didn't get the solo, Dad," Kurt said suddenly. "Apparently, I don't fit in enough. I guess the Warblers don't really appreciate self-expression." He gave a hollow laugh, but Burt could tell that this had really hit him hard.

Burt wasn't much of a talker. But there was no way in hell he would let anyone make Kurt feel insecure, whether it was intended or not.

"Now listen here, son," he said firmly, trying to project as much reassurance into his voice as possible. "You are an incredibly strong and brave person with more talent then that whole glee club put together. And if they are too dumb to see that, well, that's their problem. You just go on being the amazing person you are. Got it?"

There was a moment of silence, broken only by the sound of Kurt's hitched breath, and then Kurt spoke, his voice much stronger than before. "Got it. Thanks dad, you're the best. I love you."

"I love you too, kiddo," Burt said. "Go to bed early, kay? Don't stay up too late reading those fashion magazines of yours."

Kurt gave a shaky laugh. "Tell Carole and Finn I say hi. I feel bad; I haven't talked to them in a while."

"Don't worry, they understand," Burt told him. "Now, I meant it. Go to sleep. You know how you get when you have bags under your eyes."

Kurt laughed again, this time stronger. "Night, dad."

"Night, son," Burt said, and hung up.

GLEE

Finn was bored and though he hated to admit it, he was really starting to miss Kurt. He never thought he would actually miss having Kurt insult his taste in fashion all the time, or yell at him for leaving a mess in the bathroom, but the house seemed strangely quiet without Kurt's constant singing or his flouncing about in weird outfits.

And besides, Kurt hadn't looked so happy the last time he'd been home. Dalton boys were allowed to come home on the weekends and Kurt had gladly driven the two hours back, claiming he needed a break from all the manliness over at the all-boys school. But underneath the cheery exterior, Finn could tell that Kurt was unhappy. So, as a good brother would, he decided to call and cheer him up a bit.

Except Kurt didn't answer the phone. Instead, it was a strange guy with a deep, smooth voice.

"Uh…hi?" Finn said, confused. "Who's this? Did I get a wrong number? Whoops, sorry man, I was just trying to call my step-bro Kurt…"

"Wait," the weird guy interrupted. "Kurt's your step-brother?"

Finn paused. "Who is this?" he asked suspiciously. "And why are you answering Kurt's phone?"

The other guy gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Oh, uh…well, my name's Blaine. I'm Kurt's friend. He's busy studying now, so I answered his phone for him. Sorry about that."

Finn's mouth opened in an 'o' of recognition. "So _you're_ the Blaine dude Kurt keeps talking about!"

"Kurt talks about me?"

"All the time, dude!" Finn said enthusiastically, and then groaned. "Darn, I shouldn't have said that. Don't tell Kurt I said that!"

Blaine chuckled. "I won't, don't worry."

"Anyway, dude," Finn said, turning serious. "I need to talk to you about something."

"O…kay," Blaine said, sounding apprehensive. "Go ahead."

"Um…so, as you know, I'm Kurt's older brother," Finn began awkwardly. "And that means I'm kinda obligated to be super-protective and everything." He took a deep breath, and sent a prayer up to God, desperately hoping that Kurt would never catch wind of this. "Don't you dare tell Kurt I said this but…well, Kurt really likes you. And I'm glad he's happy and all, but…I don't want you to hurt him. He's been through a lot, dude, and he's got enough problems as it is."

There was silence at the other end of the line. Finally, Blaine spoke softly and firmly. "Finn, I would _never_ hurt Kurt. Please believe me."

"I believe you, dude," Finn said hurriedly. "But I just don't want him to be hurt. And I have to check, because I don't think he's liking at it Dalton very much."

"What do you mean?" Blaine asked, alarmed.

Finn struggled for a moment, wondering how to put it in words without offending Blaine. "It's just…he came home this weekend and he was just…not happy. He looks really sad all the time and whenever he talks to Burt on the phone, Burt always ends up looking really sad too. I just want him to be happy, ok?"

"Kurt's _sad_?" Blaine repeated.

Finn nodded and then remembered that Blaine couldn't see him. "Yeah. And I don't like it. So whatever you're doing to him over there at Dalton, please try to fix it. And you might want to hurry up, because otherwise I'll be forced to go all protective-big-bro on you, and you won't like it. Especially since Burt's been teaching me how to use his shotgun. Got it?"

There was a moment of silence.

"Got it."

Finn smiled. "Good. I'm really glad we've had this talk, man. Maybe Kurt can bring you over one day? I'd like to finally meet you."

Blaine gave a quiet chuckle. "Yeah. I'd like to meet you to."

Finn smiled and got ready to hang up.

"And Finn?" Blaine sounded like he was smiling too. "Kurt's really lucky to have a brother like you."

Finn's grin stretched from ear to ear.

GLEE

Mercedes shifted the phone to her other ear and carefully painted a bright purple stripe down her nail. Voice sounding tinny coming from the phone, Kurt babbled to her energetically.

"—I mean, I don't mind uniforms so much, and I have to admit that this one's kind of cute, but it gets so boring wearing the same old thing over and over and _over_ again! I don't know how these guys stand it, seriously—"

"Never mind about the uniforms, white boy, tell me about the boys!" Mercedes laughed, drawing her hand back and examining her freshly painted nails critically. "Any cute guys catch your eye yet? Apart from Blaine, I mean," she amended quickly.

Kurt giggled. "You know me too well, honey," he sighed. "Yes, there are quite a few very good looking boys over here."

"But you only have eyes for one, don't you," Mercedes teased.

"'cedes!" Kurt squawked in embarrassment.

"Don't lie," she laughed. "You have a crush on him the size of the Eiffel Tower!"

Kurt sighed. "All right, fine. You've got me. But 'cedes, I don't think this is just a silly crush."

"Uh huh," Mercedes said skeptically.

"Really!" Kurt insisted. "I mean…he even sang a song with me."

"What song?"

" 'Baby, It's Cold Outside,' " Kurt said breathlessly.

Mercedes paused. "Wow…maybe you're right."

"He was smiling at me 'cedes, and I swear, he was totally staring at my lips," Kurt gushed. "His voice is so gorgeous! It's like dark chocolate, all deep and smooth and husky…"

"Slow down, lover boy!" Mercedes laughed. She could imagine Kurt's face right now, flushed and bright-eyed and smiling rapturously. "You know," she noted softly, "you're sounding a lot happier."

Kurt sighed. "Things have gotten better," he admitted softly. "Everyone's stopped acting so stuffy, for one thing, and I think I've started to finally adjust."

"They treating you nicely over there?" She asked darkly.

"Yeah," Kurt said. "Maybe all that snottiness was just hazing or something. They're really starting to loosen up and everyone's being very friendly and accepting. Don't worry."

"Good," Mercedes said firmly, but how could she do anything but worry for her best friend, especially after hearing that desperately sad loneliness in his voice when he'd called her that first day and quietly admitted how lonely he was?

There was a sudden sound on the other end of the line, and all of a sudden Kurt's voice was heard, brightly saying, "oh, hello."

And then another boy was speaking, sounding apologetic and flustered. "Oh—whoops, sorry Kurt. I didn't know you were on the phone."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Kurt said breezily. "What did you want to ask?"

The boy—who had to be Blaine, because who else would make Kurt sound like that?—hurriedly said, "Well, we're having movie night and I just wanted to see if you wanted to watch. But it's all right if you're busy…" He trailed off uncertainly.

Kurt sounded amused. "Don't worry, Blaine, I'm just chatting with Mercedes. We're almost done. Right, boo?" he said into the phone, and Mercedes laughed.

"Right," she agreed, even though Blaine couldn't hear her.

"Oh, is that Mercedes? Can I say hi?" Blaine sounded enthusiastic, and Mercedes felt bad about those unkind thoughts she'd had about him during that time in Breadstix. Though she did have some right to be annoyed at him; he had totally been hogging her BFF.

"Hi, Mercedes!" Blaine said into the phone.

Mercedes grinned in amusement. "Hi, Blaine. Everything all right over there?"

"Everything's just peachy," he replied cheerily, and she had to laugh at his perky tone.

"Great," she said. "Now, don't tell Kurt I said this, but if you hurt him, you'll have to deal with me. Got it?"

"Got it," he replied seriously.

"And if you try that good ole yawn-and-put-your-arm-over-his-shoulder move, try not to mess up his hair. He hates that."

She swore she could feel Blaine's blush through the phone. "Who said I'd ever do anything like that?" he squawked. "But still…noted."

His voice was replaced by Kurt's. "Right, got to go, 'cedes. They're starting the movie in a minute. Talk to you soon?"

"You got it," Mercedes replied cheerily. "Have fun, white boy!"

"Oh, I will. We're watching an action movie and you know what that means—lots of hot, sweaty men without shirts. My kind of night. Bye!"

And with that closing remark, Kurt hung up.

GLEE

Glee practice was subdued that day. No one felt like singing and the rain drumming on the windows wasn't helping the mood much. Even Mr. Schuester was at a loss what to do.

Finally, Brittany broke the silence. "I miss Kurt."

There were murmurs of agreement and Artie nodded.

"I know, sweetie," Mercedes sighed. "I mean, I talked to him last night but it's not the same without him here."

"I even miss him insulting my outfits," Rachel said, looking down at the large owl emblazoned on the front of her shirt.

Suddenly, Tina was struck with an idea. "Mr. Schue," she said, looking up, "Could we somehow get Kurt over here? Maybe we could set up a jamming session with the Warblers or something. Kind of like we did with that school for the deaf."

Mr. Schuester nodded slowly. "That's a pretty good idea actually. It would be nice to get to know our competition. But I don't know if the Warblers would agree to that."

"Why don't we ask Kurt?" Quinn suggested.

Mercedes grinned. "Good thing I've got my cell." She pulled out her phone and dialed. After a few seconds of ringing, Kurt picked up.

"Hey, boo!" she squealed, then noticed Santana gesturing furiously at her. She caught on and quickly turned on speakerphone. The others gathered around hurriedly.

"Hey, 'cedes!" Kurt was saying. "Why are you calling? Don't you have glee?"

"We do," Mercedes smiled, "but we're all missing you too much to sing."

"Wait…we?" Kurt asked cautiously. "Am I on speakerphone?"

"Yes, you are," Mercedes confirmed, grinning mischievously.

"Oh…" Kurt trailed off. "Hi, everyone!"

"Hi, Kurt!" they all chorused back and then burst into giggles.

Kurt laughed delightedly. "Oh my gosh, it's so great to hear you all! I've missed you so much!"

"We've missed you too, Kurt," Tina said.

"So did you have a specific reason for calling? Or did you just miss hearing my fabulous voice?"

"Well," Mr. Schuester said, "we were actually hoping to invite the Warblers over for a jamming session. Do you think they'd be open for that?"

"Probably," Kurt said thoughtfully. "They're a pretty easy-going bunch, once you get past all the fustiness. And they're dying to meet you all, especially after all the stories they've heard about you."

"Wait, what?" Finn squawked. "You've been telling them stories about us?"

Kurt laughed. "Maybe," he said teasingly.

"So, can you ask them if they're ok with it?" Sam said impatiently.

Kurt heaved a sigh. "I suppose I'll have to."

They listened as Kurt walked through the hallways, his footsteps echoing in what was evidently a large corridor. He was greeted by several passersby and he replied with a bright, "hey there", each time. He was obviously already pretty well known in Dalton.

"Ah, here we are," Kurt said with satisfaction. There was the creak of an opening door and then the sound of laughing boys and the hum of conversation was heard.

"Kurt!" Someone yelled suddenly, and another boy whooped.

"Oh my God," Kurt said, horrified. "What are you doing? Who gave you guys coffee? Because I'm going to hunt that idiot down and _kill_ him."

"No coffee," a boy laughed. "We're having a marshmallow party."

"Right," Kurt said. "Of course. A marshmallow party." His tone clearly indicated that he thought they were all insane.

"Would you like a marshmallow, Kurt?" another voice said politely.

Kurt made a strangled sort of noise. "No, I would not like a marshmallow!" he hissed.

"Party pooper," another boy said.

"Shut up, Wes!" Kurt growled. "Stop giving me the bag! I don't want a marshmallow!"

Wes ignored him. "Eat it," he coaxed. "Look at this yummy puff of sugary goodness! Can't you hear it yelling? It's saying 'eat me! Eat me!' How can you refuse?"

"Blaine," Kurt said desperately to another boy. "Please!"

"Come on," Blaine said, sounding amused. "Live dangerously!"

A chant of 'EAT IT!' was started up around the room, until finally Kurt gave in.

"All right," he yelled. "I'll eat the damn thing!"

Whoops and cheers rang out from across the room.

There was the sound of munching and then everything quieted as Kurt exited the room and shut the door.

"Sorry, guys," he said into the phone. "I'll have to ask them when they're not as hyper. You won't get much sense out of them at the moment."

There was a stunned silence in the choir room.

"Are they always that…crazy?" Tina asked.

Kurt sighed. "They are a bit energetic and strange, but it's usually not that bad. I blame it on the sugar."

There was the sound of the door opening, and a different voice called out to Kurt. "Hey! Are you coming back in?"

"In a minute, Blaine," Kurt called back.

"Hurry or they'll eat all the marshmallows," Blaine warned, and withdrew.

"I'd better go before they break a vase or something," Kurt said, sounding like a world-weary mother. "I'll talk to the Warblers as soon as they've calmed down. Hopefully, I'll see you soon." There was a crash and Kurt made a strangled sound. "Thanks for calling, guys. I miss you!"

"Miss you too!" They chorused back, and Kurt disconnected the line.

Brittany pouted. "I still miss him."

"I know," Mercedes sighed.

"But it sounds like he's in good hands," Artie grinned.

"Yeah," Rachel said, thinking back on Kurt's happy tone as he'd spoken about the Warblers. "And that's what counts."

GLEE

Turning on the TV, Burt yawned and settled back in his chair. It had been a long day and sure enough, his eyes started to droop not even ten minutes into the show. With another deep yawn, he allowed himself to fall into a light doze.

He was woken by the sound of the phone ringing. With a startled grunt, he levered himself out of the chair and grabbed for the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, Dad!" It was Kurt's voice, sounding bright and cheery. "It's me!"

"Hi, kiddo," Burt mumbled, still half asleep. "How's everything?"

"Oh did I wake you up?" Kurt sounded instantly remorseful. "I'm so sorry!"

Burt rubbed his hand tiredly over his face. "Don't worry about it. I'm glad you called. So, what's been happening?"

"Oh, nothing much," Kurt said airily. "I got a ninety on that super difficult math test I kept complaining to you about, but I still have to take that giant English test that's coming up. I think I might have to set up a dentist appointment—the boys had a marshmallow party the other day and practically shoved candy into my mouth. It was delicious, of course, but so bad for my teeth and I can practically feel my hips swelling up. I hope I still fit into—"

Burt smiled and leaned back, listening to Kurt prattle on. He was content to just sit there and hear his son's voice. The house was too quiet without him, even with Finn's friends pounding up and down the stairs all the time.

Kurt's chattering was interrupted by a loud crash on his end of the line. Burt instantly sat forward.

"Kurt?" he asked, alarmed. "What was that?"

Kurt sounded confused. "I don't quite know…" he trailed off as a loud, panicked scream rang out.

Burt was quickly moving past alarmed to seriously disturbed. "Kurt, tell me what's happening," he demanded.

"I have no idea," Kurt replied, sounding confused. "Maybe someone broke another vase?"

There was another loud scream, this time accompanied with a wild roar and the sound of rushing feet. Burt's heart was pounding violently; his fingers were clenched tightly into his armchair as he anxiously clutched the phone to his ear.

There was a bang as Kurt's door crashed open, and Kurt gave a shriek. Burt's eyes widened and he strained his ears, desperately listening to the sounds on Kurt's end: a gasp...panting...mumbled swears...a soft thud...retreating footsteps…

"Kurt?" Burt asked cautiously. "What happened?"

Kurt gave a shaky laugh. "Don't worry, Dad, it's just a pillow fight. They happen here quite often apparently."

Burt breathed out and relaxed. "Well, that's a relief. I was really scared there."

"Sorry about that," Kurt sighed. "Is your heart ok?"

"The old ticker's still pumping, don't worry," Burt was quick to reassure.

Kurt was running now, his breath coming in gasps through the phone. "Sorry, Dad, I'm going to have to hang up now," he panted. "I have to hunt down the idiot who crashed into my room and challenge him to a duel. My honour is at stake and this is the perfect time to show off my ninja skills."

Burt chuckled. "Go get him, tiger. Show him how no one pushes the Hummels around." He could feel Kurt's grin through the phone.

"Thanks, Dad. Talk to you soon! Bye!"

The last thing Burt heard before the line disconnected was Kurt's high pitched battle cry.

Burt grinned. Ninja skills indeed.

GLEE

Blaine quickly found the number and pressed dial. Humming 'Teenage Dream', he waited impatiently for Kurt to pick up.

"Hello?"

Blaine's face broke into a bright grin at the sound of Kurt's voice. "Hey there," he replied enthusiastically. "It's me, Blaine."

Kurt gave a quiet chuckle. "I know."

Instantly, Blaine's mind was filled with very distracting thoughts about how adorable Kurt's laugh was. Shaking his head, Blaine pulled himself back to reality. "Er—right. So anyway, I was wondering…what are you doing tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" Kurt sounded confused. "Oh, I'm going shopping with Mercedes. Why?"

"Oh, no reason," Blaine replied airily. Then he frowned. "But isn't it Valentine's Day?"

Kurt sighed. "Alas, I remain woefully single and therefore I have nothing to do on Valentine's Day except shop with other chronically single people."

"Oh." Blaine smoothed his hair down. "Don't worry; I'm on the same boat. So where are you two going?"

"The usual," Kurt replied. "The mall."

"What time?"

"We're leaving at two—why are you so curious about this?" Kurt sounded amused and Blaine thanked his lucky stars for Kurt's obliviousness.

"Oh, no reason," Blaine said airily. "Listen, Kurt, I've got to go. Have fun with Mercedes!"

"Um…thanks," Kurt said, still sounding confused. "Bye."

Blaine hung up, mind already busily whirring. So he'd drive over to the Lima mall and corner Kurt somewhere…but now he just needed a good song. What to choose...Misery? When I Get You Alone? Silly Love Songs? Blaine grinned.

Kurt didn't stand a chance.

GLEE

"Hi, Dad!" Kurt's voice was brimming over with excitement and happiness. "You'll never guess what happened!"

"Hey, kiddo," Burt replied into the phone. "What's got you so worked up?" He raised an eyebrow. "Did that Blaine kid finally work up some guts and ask you out?"

There was a pause. "How did you guess?" Kurt replied, sounding a bit put upon that his surprise had been ruined.

Burt chuckled. "Kurt, remember when you invited him over a few weeks ago? Even _I_ could tell that that kid was heads over heels." And it had been one of the hardest challenges he'd faced yet not to grab his shotgun and sit the kid down for a talk.

"Oh." Kurt sighed. "So did everyone know he liked me _but_ me? I mean, when I announced it to everyone, all they did was say 'finally' and start exchanging money. Can you believe they were betting on who would make the first move?" Kurt's voice was indignant yet fond.

"Well, I'm glad you're happy," Burt said. "Say, why don't you invite that Blaine kid over for dinner on Sunday? I'd like to have a little talk with him, you know, get to know him, find out what his intentions are… that kind of thing."

Kurt heaved a sigh. "Fine. But I'm getting Carole to hide the shotgun. Oh, and would you mind if a few other boys came over? Not for dinner but just to hang out. They still won't believe that my room is completely white and grey. No sense of style at all, poor things."

"How many boys exactly?" Burt asked.

"Um…just five or six," Kurt said sheepishly. "Seven at the most."

"I'd better make sure Finn doesn't eat all the food in the house," Burt grumbled. "I know how hungry teenage boys can get."

"Thanks, Dad!" Kurt cried. "So I'll see you on Friday?"

"Friday," Burt affirmed. "Carole's making meatballs."

"Great!" There was a soft mumble on Kurt's side of the line. "Sorry, dad, I've got to go. I promised Jason I'd help him with French. Tell Finn and Carole I say hi!"

"Got it," Burt promised, smiling. "Bye!"

As he returned the phone to its base, Burt remembered the pale, hollow-cheeked boy that had been his son a few months ago. Then he recalled the energetic, cheerful boy from last weekend.

Yup. He'd definitely made the right choice in sending Kurt to Dalton.

END

* * *

Whoa…I can't believe this is _finally_ finished. It took me forever and a week to write this, especially because of exams. Speaking of which, I should probably go study...

Also: I'm working on the sequel to Best Laid Plans...but it's not going so well. Is there anyone willing to read what I have so far and give their opinion?

Comments are super appreciated!


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